Book Launch - Paranormal Warwickhsire by S.C. Skilman

 

Good morning, Bookaholics. I have a treat for you today as my friend and fellow author, S.C. Skilman has a book released today. You may be wondering why I am hosting an author writing a book about the Paranormal - on a Sunday fo all days. Sheila, as she is known to her friends, brings aspects of spirituality into her books and teases this out. I love her books. So, let's give Sheila a warm welcome to Bookaholics. 

Thank you, Wendy, for offering me this chance to appear on your blog on the day my new book is launched.

Paranormal Warwickshire investigates the curious tales at numerous locations in this, the county of William Shakespeare. Born in Stratford-upon-Avon, where he is widely celebrated, Shakespeare called Warwickshire his home, and although he did find great success in London with his troupe of actors, The King’s Men, he eventually returned to his home town of Stratford-upon-Avon, to live out his final years in his beautiful manor house at New Place. Indeed, it is thought he wrote The Tempest there. It is in this play that we may find the spirit Ariel, servant to Prospero the Magician. I love Shakespeare’s spirits and perhaps my favourite is the mischievous Puck from A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Shakespeare’s plays are full of ghosts and spirits, and so I have taken this as my theme for the book. It was easy for me to find quotes from the Bard which enriched or threw into sharp relief my own feelings about each place I visited.

Among the stories in my book we may find several theatre ghosts. It is well known members of the acting profession are superstitious. Actors observe many strange rituals before going on stage to perform; and despite all protestations otherwise, most of them continue to treat Macbeth with great caution. Within the pages of my book I share stories about the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, and about Rugby Theatre. Iconic castles, manor houses, abbeys and churches all appear in my pages.

But fear not, there are many stories in my book about everyday places, with working people going about their business. I share stories from trespassing teenagers; retail staff and customers; pub chefs; tourists; and workmen on building sites. Once you start looking for them, showing a readiness to listen to people, and ensuring you have your audio recorder to hand, curious anecdotes and strange first-person accounts are never far away!

Paranormal Warwickshire is out today: 15th November 2020

I hope you will enjoy reading the stories as much as I enjoyed researching them!

Thank you, Sheila. I love Shakespeare and I am looking forward to reading this. 

Sheila is a fabulous writer, my Bookaholic friends, and I know you are going to love this book. See you back here soon, and until then keep on reading and writing. 

Buy Links:

https://www.amberley-books.com/coming-soon/paranormal-warwickshire.html

https://www.waterstones.com/book/paranormal-warwickshire/s-c-skillman/9781445698267

https://amzn.to/2IEt28F

https://bit.ly/3ngKmzo



Social Media Links:



Website and blog: https://scskillman.com/

Amazon Author Profile: http://bitly.ws/9SK9

https://www.facebook.com/scskillmanauthor

https://twitter.com/scskillman

https://www.instagram.com/scskillman/

https://www.pinterest.co.uk/scskillman/_created/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/sc-skillman-42347a47/

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4692653.S_C_Skillman

Putting One Finger in Front of the Other

Writing a Book is that Easy? Or is it?

In most jobs an employee has to show up and carry out their allotted task whether they feel like it or not. The job doesn't go away just because someone isn't in the mood or isn't feeling it. Yet, often as writers, we convince ourselves that we can only write when the perfect mood strikes. I know I have the potential to give in to these feelings.  This blog is an example. I knew I needed to write a blog post and yet I put it off thinking, I haven't got an idea in my head. Time goes by and no blog post is written.

However, I think I am lying to myself. We often do as writers. Once I opened up my laptop and put one finger in front of the other, the thoughts started flowing and ideas came thick and fast. My brain, and/or my muse, just needed dragging out of bed and told that it was time get to work.

The same can be true for my novels. I can procrastinate, telling myself that my muse has up and left. That's not true. My muse just needs me to show up and join him or her. Once we're snuggled up together in front of the keyboard ideas come thick and fast. Showing up is the first part of the process.

The second part of the process is typing actual words. This may seem elementary but again the muse may need a bit of cajoling to get going. There is a lot of expert advice out in the stratosphere about writing when the mood doesn't strike. I have found one to be particularly helpful. Write anything. Write rubbish, you can do something with it later. The very process of writing will help the mind to start thinking creatively. It will then take over and the rubbish becomes something more coherent. Who knows, it might become something truly brilliant?

This advice is the same whether you, the writer, are penning a short story, an article, a blog or a book. You will not get anything done if you are not moving your fingers on the keyboard, or using a pen to script words. So going back to my caption, writing a book is that easy. Well not quite. As most writers know, there are many steps to the process of writing a book. However, none of them will ever get done if the writer and the muse are not sitting down to write the first draft.

So why are you still reading this blog? It's time to grab a pen or sit down in front of that keyboard. Your muse is waiting for you to show up so it can get cracking. More power to your pen or keyboard and I look forward to reading that completed book. If you have any more writing tips feel free to share in the comments. See you back here soon.

The First Year as a Published Author

It's Christmas day and 2015 is fast coming to an end. This is a time when thoughts turn to the year past and what the new year will bring. Today's blog will be given over to introspection, a review of what has been, and a taste of what is yet to come. 

I cannot believe that a year has gone by since Killer's Countdown was published. Only one year since I put my first book out into the world and waited to see what would happen. Would anyone like the book? Would I find readers? I am told all authors feel like this, not only with the first book, but with subsequent books. I am pleased to report that Killer's Countdown was more than warmly received and is selling well. 

Since the first book came out I have published a further two in the series, Killer's Craft and Killer's Cross. Readers have taken DI Shona McKenzie to their heart and the books are flying off the shelves, in both the physical and digital sense. It has been a whirlwind year of book launches, signings and talks. I consider it a privilege to meet readers and to talk to them about both my books and writing. I have appeared in many guises and there has been a lot of fun and laughter along the way. Signings have taken place in cafes, restaurants, shopping centres, craft shops, fairs, Waterstones bookshops and CLC bookshops. I've given talks in libraries from Dundee to London, at conferences and in village halls. Also at the three book launches in Waterstones Dundee. Again I consider all this to be a privilege and I feel blessed. All three books have been bestsellers on Amazon and in bookstores. As an author I cannot describe the giddy feeling that this brings. I certainly didn't imagine that at the beginning of the year.

So what of 2016. I am looking forward to what the new year will bring. I will be ushering it in with a free book which will be available on my website - http://www.wendyhjones.com and on this blog. For those of you who are fans of Shona you will understand why it is called DI Shona McKenzie's Guide to Killing Your Boss. For those of you who haven't yet met her this is your chance. This will be the only book in the series which will be free, so it is well worth downloading. As a little taste here is the first reveal of the cover.

It seems fitting as a writer to start a new year with a new book. However, the fourth book in the DI Shona McKenzie Mysteries is well on it's way. I am hoping it will be released in April. You will find out more on this blog in due course. I am also working on a book on Marketing and Promotion which will be released in March. It's a busy time, and I couldn't be happier. Knowing that I am writing books that others enjoy is a heady feeling. Being a writer is a blast.

I hope you my Bookaholic friends have had a fabulous Christmas and that your stockings were stuffed with lots of lovely books. May your new year bring you joy, peace and happiness. If you are a writer I wish you all the very best with your writing and your books. Thank you all for spending the last year with me and supporting me every step of the way. I look forward to spending the next year with you on a myriad of adventures.